On June 5, 2002, 19-year-old Amber Haigh left her home in Harden, New South Wales.
She was accompanied by her seven-month-old son Royce, and housemates Robert and Anne Geeves.
Their destination was the Campbelltown railway station, where Amber planned to catch a train to visit her terminally ill father.
Tragically, Amber was never seen again after bidding goodbye to her son.
Who Was Amber Haigh?
Amber Haigh was born on November 18, 1982, to George Haigh and Rosalind Wright.
Her early life was marked by various challenges and difficulties.
Her father, was described as a "volatile alcoholic" who frequently went in and out of prison, while her mother was always absent.
Amber also faced significant personal difficulties, including a serious learning disability.
By the time she turned nineteen, her intellectual capacity was equivalent to that of a twelve-year-old as a result of this disability.
She also had epilepsy, which led to regular seizures.
Despite these obstacles, she was remembered by family members as a caring and loving individual.
Amber was recognized for her loyalty and trustworthiness, and many described her as "very easily influenced and somewhat naive."
At the age of 12, Amber became a 'Ward of the State', transferring her care responsibilities to the State.
State Welfare officers intervened to ensure Amber received necessary resources.
Consequently, Amber frequently moved between the homes of relatives located in Young, Lismore, and Mount Isa, Queensland, rather than staying in one place.
At the age of 14, Amber moved to Young, New South Wales, to work and live with her aunt Stella Nealson.
However, her life took a significant turn when she became involved with Robert Geeves, a much older man.
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| Amber Haigh |
A New Life for Amber
Amber's relationship with Robert Geeves, who was married, began shortly after her move to Young.
Amber’s aunt Stella Nealson mentioned that Robert would frequently visit them to see Amber, when she was only fifteen years old.
Despite a the age gap between them, and the fact that Robert was married, Amber continued the relationship.
She eventually moved out of her Aunty's home, and moved in with Robert and his wife Anne.
Surprisingly, neither Anne nor Robert Geeves seemed unhappy, despite the unusual nature of this relationship.
This unconventional living arrangement set the stage for future complications, especially when Amber became pregnant with Robert's child.
Amber's pregnancy brought both joy and concern.
She was excited to become a mother, yet deeply worried about the potential risks due to her epilepsy.
Amber even drafted a will, expressing her fears about not surviving childbirth.
On January 21, 2002, she gave birth to her son Royce, but her anxieties about her future remained.
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| Amber, her son, and Robert Geeves |
The Disappearance
Amber was reported missing by Robert and Anne Geeves on June 19, 2002.
They claimed that on June 5, they had driven her to Campbelltown railway station so she could visit her sick father in Mount Druitt.
Amber never reached her intended destination.
Her bank accounts showed no further activity after a withdrawal on the evening of her disappearance.
Here is a detailed timeline of key events surrounding Amber Haigh's disappearance:
- 1997: Amber moves to Kingsvale, NSW, to live with her great aunt Stella Nealson.
- 2001: Amber (18) moves in with Robert (42) and Anne Geeves in Kingsvale.
- Mid-2001: Amber becomes pregnant with Robert's child.
- January 21, 2002: Amber gives birth to Royce
- June 3, 2002: Anne and Robert Geeves stay at a hotel which is approximately three hours from their home.
- June 5, 2002: Amber is last seen by the Geeves at Campbelltown railway station.
- June 9, 2002: The Geeves purchase nails and a hammer at a hardware store. They are also seen driving on a ‘lonely road’ with a trailer on the back of their car.
- June 12, 2002: The Geeves stay again at the same hotel which is three hours away from their home.
- June 19, 2002: The Geeves report Amber as missing to the Harden Police Station.
The Investigation
After reporting Amber missing, the New South Wales police quickly assembled an investigation team.
Led by Detective Sergeant Gae Crea, the team worked urgently to solve the mystery of Amber's disappearance, considering her vulnerable health conditions.
Initial interviews with Robert and Anne Geeves did not yield substantial leads, and there were alot of inconsistencies in their stories.
During one of their interviews, Robert speculated on Amber's disappearance.
He implied that she might have decided to leave on her own, possibly due to the pressures of parenting.
"I suppose a baby can wear you down a bit, and honestly, I'm feeling completely overwhelmed," he said.
When questioned about Royce's biological father, Robert made a cryptic comment, stating, "[Royce's father] isn't too far off - I have a suspicion of his whereabouts"
However, inconsistencies in their stories and suspicious activities, such as buying tools and frequently staying at motels, raised red flags.
Detective Gae Crea later commented on the unusual discovery they uncovered during their investigation into Ambers's disappearance.
“It was odd why they traveled from Kingsvale to Campbelltown to drop off a girl with the mentality of a 12-year-old at a train station just half an hour from Mount Druitt,” he said.
He also pointed out that Campbelltown was a long four-hour drive from Kingsvale.
If the Geeves had kept driving, it would have only taken them an additional 30 minutes to reach Mount Druitt.
"If their goal was to fasten the journey by putting Amber on a train, there were several closer stations to Kingsvale that would have either directly or indirectly connected to Mount Druitt, such as Harden Station, Lithgow Station, and Goulburn Station," he added
The timeline of events also raised questions for him and his team.
Amber arrived at Campbelltown station around 8:30pm, and her bank card was used in Campbelltown at approximately 8:45pm.
If Amber had used the card herself, she could not have boarded a train to Mount Druitt before 8:45pm.
In 2021, the travel time from Campbelltown to Mt Druitt would take at least 1 hour and 45 minutes.
Amber’s earliest possible arrival time at the hospital, including a potential 15-minute walk from the station, would have been around 10:45pm.
By then, visiting hours at the hospital would already be over for the night.
As of 2021, visiting hours at Mount Druitt Hospital are from 5pm to 7pm.
Investigators tried to retrieve the CCTV footage from Campbelltown Station to verify if Amber had indeed boarded a train to Mt Druitt.
However, the station's CCTV system operated on a weekly cycle, deleting old footage to make space for new recordings after 7 days.
Amber's transaction with her bank card at 8:45pm was supposed to confirm her presence at the station.
However, the fact that Robert and Anne Geeves also had access to her card, complicated the investigation.
Someone was present at Campbelltown Station that night, but authorities could not definitively identify who.
Amber’s family also questioned her supposed decision to disappear, leaving her son behind.
Amber was known as a proud mother who regularly shared moments with her beloved son, as recounted by her grandmother Ann Haigh.
She said Amber was the type of mother who wouldn’t have missed the chance to introduce baby Royce to her family, especially her critically ill father.
Sergeant Gae Crea also raised this concern.
He questioned why she wouldn’t have taken Royce to see his grandfather in the hospital, especially since he hadn't seen Royce before.
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| Amber Haigh and her son |
Robert Geeves Previous Encounter with the Law
Robert Geeves has had previous encounters with the law long before Amber Haigh's case.
In 1986, two 13-year-old girls mysteriously vanished.
They never came home from school and were only found two weeks later.
One of the school girls – Erica, who later came forward to speak about her experiences on ‘60 Minutes Australia' – reported the incident to police.
She claimed she was abducted, kept in a silo, and repeatedly raped by Robert Geeves.
However, the other girl said the story was a lie.
The case was later taken to court as Geeves was to face assault and kidnapping charges.
However, these charges were dropped, and this was likely due to a lack of evidence.
Robert was instead charged with ‘hindering police’ and served 100 hours of community service.
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| Robert and Anne Geeves |
Seven years later, on Monday, June 21, 1993, a body was discovered at the Geeves' Kingsvale home.
The deceased, 29-year-old Janelle Goodwin, a mother of two, had been staying with Robert Geeves and his wife Anne.
According to Janelle's mother, she originally intended to live with Robert for a short while.
But things got serious between them, and it soon developed into a relationship between Janelle and Robert
Despite having undergone a vasectomy, Robert had it reversed once their relationship began, and Janelle became pregnant a few months later.
On the night of Sunday, June 20, 1993, Janelle and Robert drove to Wombat to buy bourbon and later drank heavily at the Geeves' farm.
According to Robert, an argument broke out between them, escalating to physical violence.
He claimed that during the struggle, a rifle was pulled, and Janelle accidentally shot herself.
Given their complex relationship, this account might have seemed plausible.
Police Prosecutor Acting Sergeant Mitchell Croyston described the relationship as not "rosy."
He recounted a witness's report that Robert allegedly asked him to sleep with Janelle so Robert would have a reason to leave her.
While accidental gunshots were rare in 1993, with only 13 recorded, the way Janelle's body was found raised suspicions.
Janelle Goodwin, once an esteemed Australian Army Nurse, was found in a shed on the Geeves' property.
Her naked body was wrapped in a sheet, her head covered in plastic, and she was placed in a wheelbarrow.
Twine was tied around her ankles, knees, thighs, chest, and neck.
She had been shot in the left nostril, with the bullet traveling through her brain and lodging at the back of her skull.
The autopsy revealed additional injuries, including a lacerated lip, bruises on her chin, thighs, and forehead, and a dented gold ring on her left finger.
Blood in her lungs indicated she was alive for some time after the gunshot.
Her blood-alcohol level was 0.202, twice the legal driving limit in Australia, and she was seven months pregnant.
The investigation of the Geeves' house revealed drying clothes in front of the fireplace and a meticulously cleaned .22 caliber rifle under a bed with the spent cartridge missing.
Additionally, the lawn where the crime occurred had been hosed down, erasing any blood evidence.
The dent on Janelle's gold ring matched the rifle's front sight.
Also, tests confirmed that the rifle’s safety bolt had to be turned off before firing, ruling out an accidental discharge.
After all the tests and analysis, it became clear that Janelle was shot intentionally.
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| Janelle Goodwin |
Robert Geeves was quickly arrested on suspicion of murder, but building a case proved challenging.
Although it was clear he had tied up Janelle's body and placed her in the wheelbarrow, his actions before reporting her death were suspicious, but not conclusive evidence of murder.
Immediately after Janelle's death, he went visiting his mother, picking up tractor parts, and buying some beer.
Robert Geeves pleaded not guilty, and on November 15, 1993, the magistrate at the Cootamundra Local Court discharged him due to insufficient evidence.
Robert has consistently maintained his innocence, and what truly happened to Janelle Goodwin on June 21, 1993, remains unconfirmed.
Recent Developments and Arrest of Robert and Anne Geeves
On July 8, 2011, Deputy State Coroner Scott Mitchell concluded that Amber Haigh was deceased and likely died in early June 2002 due to homicide or other misadventure.
He described her death as "a tragedy" and emphasized that it had "robbed her little boy of his mother"
Coroner Mitchell also determined there was "never any real prospect" that Amber had abandoned her baby to start a new life, contrary to what the Geeves had initially suggested.
Recently, the Greeves were arrested and charged with the murder of Amber Haigh after authorities came up with new leads
The prosecution alleges the couple killed Amber to gain custody of her son who Amber had given birth to while living with them.
They have both pleaded not guilty
However, the ongoing court proceedings have uncovered a lot of hidden details about Amber's living conditions with the Geeves.
The case is still ongoing but Amber Haigh's whereabouts remain unknown.
The police continue to seek any new information that might shed light on Amber's fate, urging anyone with knowledge of her disappearance to come forward.
Also, the New South Wales (NSW) government has since offered a $1 million reward for information leading to a conviction over her presumed murder.
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